Hi Deb, Yes, setting up classes in Perth as an independent educator has been hard for years. We have had several students of the Graduate Diploma who found the going tough - there does seem to be a "closed shop" mentality amongst hospital staff towards community classes and they are not seen as a resource that can be helpful to the system - e.g. as a place to refer clients when the hospital classes are full, as a source of support for innovative hospital services etc.
There are a whole group of independent educators in Sydney, and have been for many years. Some receive referrals from Hospital booking clerks etc and midwives, and word of mouth is another source of clients. I am not running private classes at the moment (never here long enough!) but when I was, for many years I too had women calling to book in very early. I never had trouble filling classes! It is hard to know what to suggest to rectify the situation in WA - there needs to be much better communication between hospital staff and community based educators. Some hospitals there are very defensive about their maternity care and there has been a lot of scrutiny of birth outcomes (not as good as they should/could be) that probably feeds into a siege mentality that discourages open communication. The situation in many of the hospitals has probably been one of the reasons why home birth has flourished - and of course home birth midwives often run their own classes or groups. Keep trying - there is a real need for good educators everywhere! Andrea >>In Britain I used to work on behalf of the National Childbirth Trust and >>couples would book months in advance to get a place on a course as well >>as going to the hospital ones, so it's a bit of culture shock for me here!! ----- Andrea Robertson Birth International * ACE Graphics * Associates in Childbirth Education e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] web: www.birthinternational.com -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
